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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. key — the most important part
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — a subject
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. key — for a lock
  8. key — in music
  9. sharp — clever
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. field — farmland
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. pit — a hole
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. kick — in football
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. pit — in a race
  24. calf — of the leg

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com